Face your Fears
by MadelyneBlue
Summary: The 3rd Year students at Westeros School of Witchcraft and Wizardry are going to attend a very special lesson. They have to confront a boggart, a shape-shifting creature that will make them face their deepest fears. 5 students will fail the test and 1 will pass it, but in an unexpected way.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing. This is just a fanfic.

Characters are G.R.R. Martin's and the setting and background belong to Rowling.

_**Face your Fears**_

_**Chapter 1.**_

The classroom was not the usual one.

At first, this particular lesson had been supposed to be taught at no other place but the staffroom. However, some professor had complained about it and the students had been waiting until they were told about the new place to go. Thus, there they went, to a different classroom which was wide, long and large enough. In fact, it looked even larger than it really was, for every desk and chair had been removed from it. The only piece of furniture left was an old wardrobe which had never been there in the first place. The oddest thing about it was that something seemed to be moving inside it, as if trying to open its door. The Third year students at Westeros School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, as they came into the room for their Defence Against the Dark Arts class, stared at it suspiciously and started wondering what its presence would mean. When all of them were inside, Professor Thoros of Myr, an amused grin of anticipation on his lips, made the huge door close behind them with a single movement of his wand and asked for silence.

"My dear students, today we are going to put into practice the theory that I explained to you last week. Does anyone remember about the creature called boggart?"

A doe-eyed, beautiful girl put up her hand.

"Margaery?"

"Thank you, Professor Thoros. A boggart is a creature that loves darkness. It is an amortal non-being. Nobody knows what it looks like when it's alone, because it is a shape-shifter. The boggart takes the shape of what the person who is facing it fears most. The charm that is used against this creature is the _Riddikulus_ charm. Besides, the best way to fight against a boggart is in group, because it will make it confused and unable to keep a stable shape."

"Excellent!" the adult praised. "One point for your house."

Margaery glowed. The girl was a good student though not as skilled in actual magic performance as her brother Loras. Nonetheless, she had proved herself a genius regarding potions -which came as no surprise, provided that she was granddaughter to a Master in the matter, The Queen of Thorns- and had become Professor Oberyn Martell's favourite.

"At least one of you has done their homework. Anyway, I must be a little more precise. The _Riddikulus_ charm is used indeed, but the incantation is not enough to defeat a boggart; the most important thing is your mental force. You have to create a hilarious image in your mind and convince yourselves that the frightening vision will turn into it. You must fight the horror with laughter. In short, you must face your deepest fears.

"And today you are going to begin practicing it, one by one, not in group. Thus, prepare your wands and stand in line", said the teacher. Then he moved towards the wardrobe, which was wobbling. "So, that boggart within is awaiting for you to frame its shape... Who will be the brave one to start the practical lesson?"

The students looked at each other in distress as nobody seemed to decide to volunteer. Thoros missed one of the Stark boys, Robb; undoubtedly he would have been the one to give the first step.

"Where is Robert Stark? Why isn't he attending class today?"

Jon, Robb's half-brother, answered.

"He hasn't felt well lately, professor. He got..._sick_ last night."

Jon blushed and Thoros understood. Of course; last night there had been full moon and Robb, although dutiful and hard-working and charming, was also a werewolf, like some others in his family. The Starks were a pure-blooded family of wizards and witches, but had the misfortune of having werewolf tendencies among them, a curse which had already cost lives time ago. Fortunately, Jon was just an Animagus; he can also transform himself into a wolf, but on his own accord and First year student Sansa doesn't have any trait of either. However, Thoros knew that the head teacher had already been warned that the next Stark child in entering the school, Arya, had the same problem_. What a pity, a worthy but doomed family._

"It is an inconvenience, but surely you would take your brother's place as a volunteer, wouldn't you, Jon?" It was a subtle command and Jon swallowed hard and placed himself in front of the shaking piece of furniture, wand in hand and decision in his eyes. "Thank you, Jon. And now the lesson starts." Thoros opened the wardrobe and everyone stared at it with mesmerized eyes.

An unknown woman appeared and took a few steps towards Jon. The woman was dressed in plain clothes; she had long hair and nothing special or frightening about her appearance except for her face. It was not a face, properly, but a blur, a void. She stood in front of Jon. Her body language was one of rejection and the boy hesitated.

"Now! The charm!"

"_Riddikulus!_" said Jon, but his voice was barely a whisper and nothing happened. The woman stayed the same and started to move onwards.

"Jon? Think of something funny. Focus on it and repeat the charm."

"_Riddikulu_-_riddikul_... Mo-mother? Is it _you_?"

Thoros frowned. "It's not real. Concentrate!"

"I can't!" the boy cried in anguish "I can't harm my mother! I just can't!"

Tears began dropping from his eyes as he stood motionless and Thoros had to move fast and cast the spell himself before the boggart would reach Jon at last. The students saw in horror how the creature changed quickly into something resembling a male half-living corpse and it was then turned into a clown. Thoros denied the chill that ran up his spine and tried and comfort the embarrassed and sad boy.

"It's alright; you don't have to be ashamed. It was just your first try; you'll pass the test next time. At least, you have put the appropriate intonation to the incantation." Jon's mouth twisted in a mockery of a smile which was immediately given up. He came back to the other students where he was welcome by his sort-of-a girlfriend and his friend Sam, who was even paler than him. Jon tried to stand tall, but he was still trembling and fighting against the tears. _R'hllor, the boy looks miserable; I should have thought that his fears would have nothing to do with monsters, but with emotions_.

"Poor little Snow with his mommy issues...Thanks for the pathetic show, mudblood!" said Joffrey Baratheon with a malicious laughter and some of his followers accompanied him.

Jon glowered, but before he could reply Ygritte spoke for him.

"Shut you mouth, you piece of crap."

"Enough!" exclaimed Professor Thoros before the argument got angrier. "Behave yourselves or your houses will be punished. One of you will be the next student to confront the boggart."

Joffrey recoiled but Ygritte glared at the non-being now turned corpse in clown's clothes with defiance.

"I will."

"Ok, Ygritte. You know what you have to do. Try to think of what you fear most and transform it in your mind beforehand."

"I'll cope with it, I'm sure. No one hurts my man." And she walked boldly, leaving behind a flushed Jon while Thoros moved aside to allow her confront the creature. _Teenagers._

The boggart shifted and took the shape of a woman, once again. She was young and beautiful and was wearing the finest and richest dress anyone could ever fancy, glamorous high heels and gorgeous jewelry. Ygritte stared at _her_ in astonishment and a murmur grew from behind. The young woman, almost a girl, had fiery red hair prettily combed in soft curls, lovely eyes, porcelain skin ornamented with tiny freckles that made her look charming and a perfect white smile. She was elegant and as delicate as a princess or a lady.

She _was_ Ygritte herself; or it would have been if Ygritte were not so..._wild_. A distorted -or improved, depending on how you considered it- reflection of her. The murmur grew louder and there were some exclamations and whistles of admiration among the boys -Theon being the most enthusiastic of them. _Women are going to be the death of him. Damn his Greyjoy heritage!_ Nevertheless, Thoros had to hide a smile himself. _This is a weird kind of fear, indeed. _But the boggart was quite real and dangerous.

"Now, my brave student! There's no time for doubts."

"_Riddikulus!"_ shouted the real Ygritte, whose face had turned as red as her hair. For a moment, the fake redhead shivered and the vision blurred and Thoros thought that the girl had succeeded. But the moment was gone and the boggart recovered the shape.

"You've almost succeeded! Try again, think of something amusing!"

"It's impossible!" Ygritte replied in anger. "I can't imagine anything more _ridiculous _than this!"

She was getting angrier and more scared within every second and the moment the boggart giggled and curtsied, she screamed and Thoros had to sort it out. The beautiful lady disappeared to give birth to the corpse or zombie and then to the clown. Some of the students had time to realize that his head had been smashed mercilessly and that an eye was missing.

"Don't worry, Ygritte. You almost got it, you only need more practice." She didn't answer, embarrassed, and came back to her place, where Jon and others tried to cheer her up. Thoros noticed that some of the teenagers were still trying to hide their amusement. Margaery Tyrell and her companions were giggling and gossiping. _She will tell Sansa Stark as soon as she can_. Other girls, on the contrary, were looking at Ygritte sympathetically, like Gilly or Daenerys, who was strangely more silent than she used to. The boys didn't dare to look at Ygritte for they knew she would strike back when she would get better, except for Theon, who was grinning, though he avoided making a jape -and, of course, Joffrey.

"The mudblood and the wildling! Two of a kind! There should be stricter rules to let some people enter this school!" His cousin Lancel and other relatives as well as the Frey boys cheered his comment and Thoros got upset. The boy was insufferable and vain and he had no reasons for his vanity. His only merits came from his family wealth and importance in the Ministry of Magic, for he was but an average wizard, a coward and a mean person. He was the type who bullied the weak and little ones, but flinched from the strong. It was difficult to believe he shared Professor Tyrion's blood, of whom Thoros was very fond. Tyrion was still young but one of the most brilliant History of Magic teachers the school had ever known. _And a brave and witty person. It's no surprise he doesn't like his nephew at all._

"Joffrey, maybe you can show us all your expertise. You will be next. Be prepared."


	2. Chapter 2

The blond boy grimaced but kept his composure as well as he could and walked to the front of the queue, all bravado, nothing of bravery. As he was passing by, he blinked an eye to the Tyrell girl and she smiled back. Thoros could notice the disdain and contempt in the smile, but the boy only saw what he wanted to see: devotion. _Such a fool. I bet I'm going to enjoy this. I'm sure there will appear some kind of monster. He had to leave Care of Magical Creatures and choose another elective subject because he had no guts to even get close to some of them. Or perhaps he'll see himself as a beggar in ragged clothes! _Thoros moved away to let Joffrey face the boggart and the non-being started changing.

That time there was no woman, no beggar Joff and no human at all. Sudden gasps spread across the classroom when the huge, grey werewolf appeared and Thoros could swear that Robb's name was mentioned by someone - Jon or Theon, of that he wasn't sure. Could well be but for the fact that the beast had two Lannister heads: one was Tywin's and the other was Tyrion's and Thoros had to use every bit of his willpower to avoid bursting into laughter. Joffrey looked terrified; his face had lost its colour and he was babbling, unable to say _the_ single word. Four threatening eyes fixed upon him and two mouths showed their teeth as if they wanted to devour him alive and the young _Baratheon _panicked. The wand dropped from his trembling hand and he fell on his own back while trying to recoil. He was screaming hysterically, unable to stand up. Mischievously, Thoros let the moment linger before making a movement; he was enjoying the scene too much and knew that most of the group was so. However, the weird beast was going to jump over Joffrey, and Thoros would never allow one of his pupils get hurt without helping them. Thus, he ran and said the incantation and poor Beric Dondarrion made his appearance once again. _Forgive me for what I did to you, my friend! I hope your soul found peace at last. The Lord of Light bless you!_ He knew for certain that night would be truly dark and full of horrors and nightmares for him and he would be praying for redemption all night long.

"Well, Joffrey, I expect you to have learnt something from this experience. It wasn't as easy as you presumed, was it?" the adult said as he helped the boy to stand up.

Joffrey looked daggers at him and went back to his former place in the classroom, still shuddering frantically. _He will complain to his family, no doubt, and his mother will get really angry. _That Cersei had been spoiling his child so much, as if he were the greatest wizard of all time and deserved everyone else's submission. She had delayed his entering their school for two years because she had decided him to be taught at home by private teachers. Definitely, they had failed in making him the greatest wizard in the world, as the rest of the students were reminding him of.

"Professor Tyrion? _Seriously_? It seems I'm not the only one with family issues," said Jon.

"You weren't even able to cast the spell! You are nothing but a braggart and know nothing, _pureblood _!" Ygritte screamed.

"Robb will be delighted to know about this little show. Surely I will make him know," Theon mocked at him.

"Blood of the craven!", Daenerys spat the words with disgust. Her family held a grudge against Joffrey's, for his _uncle_ had given Dany's father to the Dementors and his _father_ had tried to get her brother Rhaegar sacked from the Ministry of Magic. It was true that Aerys had embraced the Dark Arts after becoming insane and he had been on the verge of destroying the whole country, but Rhaegar was an upright and reliable Minister, supported by his family-in-law, the Martells. They all were powerful families that were still playing a game of seats in the Ministry. _Useless struggles! Instead of worrying about what really matters, the real danger. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, R'hllor's enemy._

For once in his life, the spoilt brat didn't reply and stayed behind, humiliated. Thoros almost felt pity for him. _Almost_.

Anyway, the students' failure was not what Thoros had planned for that lesson. He wondered what the reason for it was -whether he had overestimated the teenagers' skills or had underestimated their burden of fears. Nonetheless, the general mood seemed more relaxed and he considered a bonus to motivate them.

"Maybe I have pushed you a little further to start practising this particular theory, but I'm still sure that some of you can pass this test. Besides, the ones who can will receive 3 bonus points for their house. So, do we have another courageous volunteer?"

There was some hesitation here and there and some of them seemed to be thinking about it when an unexpected one staggered along.

"Samwell? Thank you very much," the teacher said.

"Well! I'm not... I do not..." the boy stammered, confused.

"C'mon! We _do_ need the points!" said Ygritte. In fact, she had been the one who had given Sam a violent thrust to _volunteer_.

"But...I, I..."

" I trust you, Sam. You are a brave guy and you're smart!" Gilly encouraged him.

_Isn't she adorable?_ Nonetheless, her words made Sam make his mind and take his wand with resolution. _Teenagers._

"Alright, Sam. Be prepared!" Thoros told him.

And the boggart changed.

Firstly, it took Samwell's father looks but the vision was a little blurred. Before the image became clear, it shifted into a faceless woman dressed in fancy clothes. Immediately, it became a corpse and then a wolfish monster and then a giant spider and then...

_For R'hllor's sake! Is there anything in this world he's not afraid of? _

Everybody else was silent, too astonished to say a word or make a jape. To Sam's credit, it had to be pointed out that he didn't make a scene like Joff had made before. He just froze, eyes and mouth wide open, the useless wand still in his hand. Thoros tried to take advantage of the situation.

"Well, this could be used in your favour. Its shape is so unstable that it's almost as if the boggart had to confront a group of people. It will be weak! Say the charm!"

It was no use. Sam stayed motionless and mute and the adult saved the day again._ I'm going to vomit if I see Beric like that just once more!_

Sam finally moved, resigned. Gilly comforted him with reassuring sentences -"You were intelligent, you tricked it."

Suddenly, Thoros felt very tired and thought that the lesson would rather be over but before he could tell his students, an actual volunteer gave a step forward.

" You losers! It's time for a grown man to teach you something," Theon said.


	3. Chapter 3

"You losers! It's time for a grown man to teach you something," Theon said.

His scornful words caused a murmur of indignation, but Theon didn't seem to worry. It was clear that he had got used to the fact that a lot of people at school considered him to be an arrogant jerk, just like Joffrey.

Thoros knew that the youngster had a lot of flaws. Nevertheless, from his point of view the comparison was not fair at all and it was just based on superficial similarities. For instance, it was certain that Theon used to boast about his being older but it was just a façade to hide his embarrassment. Unlike Joff or Ygritte, whose wildness had got her in and out school until she had finally settled down, Theon had been forbidden by his own family to study wizardry for many years. It was not until the Starks had finally got legal custody that he hadn't been freed from the Greyjoys' eccentricities and mistreatments. However, he was in a year he didn't really belong to and the fact tormented him, though he hid it deep inside. Very few people really knew the truth about his past.

_He is not a spoilt brat. He was an abused one_.

The lean young man whispered something about Robb to Jon. Whatever it was, it made the grey-eyed boy pull a longer face than his usual one. Theon just grinned.

_He could have been an impressive wizard, for he has the powerful Harlaw's blood running through his veins. His mother was one of the best witches of her generation, long ago. His father deprived her of her magic. After that, she had been slowly falling into an insane condition._

He moved gracefully and smiled at Margaery while he was walking to oppose the non-being.

_The Greyjoys themselves have the gift in their blood, but they repudiated it. Those ironborn consider magic unmanly and a sign of weakness. To make things worse, one of his uncles had some sort of foolish revelation and those savages started thinking of magic as unholy, too. Once, Balon himself proclaimed that he would rather see a child of his dead than let them be a wizard or a witch. He nearly made those words come true, in Theon's case. I remember his brothers were as brutal as his father._

Margaery smiled back and, this time, the smile was a real one, edged with flirting.

_On top of that, the only Greyjoy that defied that rule, Euron, embraced the Dark Arts to such an extent that made Mad Aerys pale by comparison. He called himself "Lord Crow's Eye" and became a notorious mass murderer, using the Unforgivable Curses. Lots of good people died before he could be stopped and sent to prison. The maddest of the mad and the most dangerous of them all. He was even able to escape the maximum security prison Azkaban Dreadfortress before being caught again and finally sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss. _

Theon prepared his wand and stayed in front of the shape-shifter.

_Some say that Balon forced the youngest of his sons to witness Euron's punishment. Some say it was just a lie because no child could endure to witness that without losing his mind. Some say it was the last straw that gave the Starks the victory at court for Theon's custody. Some say... _

_R'hllor! No! NO!_

"THEON! WITHDRAW!" Thoros shouted at the top of his lungs.

It was too late. The boggart changed and time slowed down.

The hideous image of a Dementor floated in the air. It was like the embodiment of the Grim Reaper itself.

The youngster looked feverish. An ominous silence lingered all around.

Thoros started running to stop the creature. All of a sudden, he froze in place.

The Dementor had pulled his hood back. Its abominable mouth was surrounded by meaty, wormy lips. Small, oddly pale eyes glowed with sadism.

Thoros had seen that _face_ before. It belongs to Prison Warder Bolton's son.

He was going to_ kiss_ Theon.

_Lord of Light!_

Theon went out of his mind. He cast spell after spell, said charm after charm in a frenzy of anxiety. Chaos took control of the classroom.

The old wardrobe exploded. Bolts of lightning shone everywhere, striking the walls. Then panic took over. The students were screaming and several of them ran away and left the room.

The adult stared at the scene petrified, unable to do a thing. It seemed like something unreal, something that wasn't really happening.

Theon and the Bolton-Dementor-boggart were fighting in circles as if they were dancing a deadly waltz. The lean youth was shaking his wand desperately while gabbling incantations and incoherent pieces of speech. Amidst the pandemonium, Thoros could grasp some of them.

"Father, please, please! Don't!" "I won't be like him, promise, I won't!" "He will suck my soul out, he wants to erase everything I am, he wants me to be his forever!" "I won't let him, I'm not my uncle, my name doesn't rhyme with anything, I'm a man, I have to remember my name!"

"My name is THEON!" he yelled. "_AVADA KED_...!"

" _EXPELLIARMUS _!" Thoros cried out.

The wand was violently released from Theon's hand. Thoros finally pulled himself together and moved. The vision of Beric's corpse was like a blessing after everything he had witnessed minutes ago. He got to his student and held him tight for he was shaking helplessly.

"Listen to me, Theon. Listen to me, my boy! Focus on me! Never say those words again! That's the Killing Curse! You're not a murderer, my boy; you're not like your uncle! I don't give a damn about what your bloody family told you. You are not a murderer and you'll never be!"

Theon burst into tears of agony and shame. The students that remained were terrified and the room looked like a place where a bomb had just blown out. The teacher felt sick.

"Enough! Class is over!"

"Professor Thoros? Daenerys!" someone warned.

It was too late, again. The Targaryen girl had run towards the non-being with a vindictive expression on her beautiful face. She might have remembered her father's fate.

_No! Not again!_

Instead of a new Dementor, a tall, gaunt demon with eyes bluer than any human eye appeared. Thoros muttered a prayer and Daenerys looked surprised. However, the vision changed quickly into a nightmarish monster. A huge dragon made of ice.

Daenerys stood her ground.

"Dracarys!" she said.

As her body shifted into the shape of a red and black dragon and everybody learnt that there was another Animagus in town, she breathed fire and the fake ice dragon melted, together with everything that was behind it.


End file.
